


Goths and Emos on a Plane

by ariya167



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Airports, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, May Maiko Week 2018, Mostly Fluff, but with a tiny dash of angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-20
Updated: 2018-05-20
Packaged: 2019-05-09 09:11:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14713251
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ariya167/pseuds/ariya167
Summary: For Maiko Week Day 1, "Flight".





	Goths and Emos on a Plane

Mai stared at the boarding screen and quietly sighed. Beside her, a twin glare settled on Zuko’s face, and he crossed his arms. 

“Fuck this,” He said, and the middle-aged woman who had been side-eyeing them backed away. Mai didn’t say anything, but she agreed with the sentiment. Azula had called them the night before, demanding they return to Tokyo immediately, for a ‘family reunion’ and it didn’t matter if they said no, because she had already bought the tickets, and you couldn’t argue with Azula when she was mad. 

Now they were going to be late for what was obviously going to be a painful and insufferable event because of ‘inclement weather’. And to top that off, they’d have to spend four hours in an airport, until another plane was available. 

She sighed again, and dragged Zuko towards the row of chairs before he made a scene. 

“I’ll call Azula,” She said when they sat down, fishing in her pocket for her phone. Azula picked up after the third ring, which was unusual for her, and she was out of breath.

“What do you want, Mai?” 

“The plane’s delayed four hours. Inclement weather.” 

Azula swore loudly, and from the sound of it, threw something against a wall.

“I see,” She said a few moments later, evidently trying to not strangle Mai over the phone. “Well, if we push it to tomorrow-” Azula paused, and Mai figured she was doing calculations. “Excellent. You’ll still get here in time.”

“You know,” Mai said before she hung, because she couldn’t help herself. “This might be easier if you told us you were planning this ahead of time.”

Azula laughed. “Then it wouldn’t have been a surprise, dumb-dumb,” She said, before hanging up with a click. 

“What did she say?” Zuko asked.

“She’s got a contingency plan. We’re not going to be late.”  
“Of course she does,” Zuko said bitterly, leaning back in the plastic chair, which creaked alarmingly. Mai sighed, but affectionately this time, and put her hand on his arm. 

“Hey, at least you’ll have to spend less time at home,” She said quietly, her fingers drifting to gently rest on his scar. He tensed slightly, but didn’t pull away, and Mai knew what kind of thoughts were running through his head. Even if he and his father could be civil to him-and Ozai was bound to be there, no matter what Azula had planned, even though they had officially split ties-Zuko still hated being around him. 

“Yeah,” Zuko looked down at his feet for a minute, then back up at her. “But if we’re going to be in this airport for four more hours, what do you want to do?” 

~

They wandered around the tiny shops for a while, trying on expensive sunglasses and hats, leafing through trashy magazines, and-at least for Mai-rolling their eyes at lovey-dovey couples. 

“You know, we kind of are that kind of couple,” Zuko pointed out, though he looked ridiculous in the sunhat he was wearing. 

Mai rolled her eyes, and pushed a pair of dark sunglasses onto her face. “No, we’re not. We’re much more romantic.”

“Really?” Zuko asked, raising an eyebrow in a manner he probably thought was smooth. She sighed fondly, lifting her sunglasses and stepping closer to her boyfriend. 

“Really,” Mai murmured, pressing a soft kiss to Zuko’s left cheek, before quickly breaking apart and turning back to the rack of sunglasses. 

She snuck a glance back at Zuko, who was grinning rather widely. 

“Come on, we’ve still got an hour to go,” She added, lacing her fingers with his. “Want to get something to eat?” 

“Sure, if this place has a Cinnabon,” Zuko negotiated, and Mai aquescied with a slight smile. 

~

They split a cinnamon bun together-another coupley thing, dammit-but it tasted fine enough for airport food. 

“Ready for an eleven-hour flight?” Zuko asked, and Mai rolled her eyes. 

“Definitely,” She said sarcastically, stabbing the cinnamon bun with her fork. She ate it in a few bites, grimacing at the heavily sweetened taste.

“We should just sell the tickets,” He suggested, and Mai smiled slightly at the idea. “We can use the money, and we won’t have to go all the way to Tokyo.” 

“Azula would hunt us down if we ever tried that,” Mai said ruefully, but Zuko only shrugs. 

“It’s a nice fantasy,” He said, and Mai couldn’t disagree with that. Then he grabbed the last bite of cinnamon bun before standing up and tossing the tray into the trash, and offering her his arm. “You ready?”

Mai sighed fondly, and took his hand. The pair walked in silence out of the foodcourt and towards the gate, but it was an amicable silence, one that stretched and grew and settled comfortably. Mai rested her head on Zuko’s shoulder, twining her fingers with his, and twisted her head just so that no one could see her private, secret smile. 

Unfortunately, the moment ended all too soon, as they arrived at the crowd of angry, impatient, and tired people they’d soon be sharing a plane with. They seperated, a glare settling on Zuko’s face, and an irritated sigh escaping Mai’s lips. The line moved slowly, each person demanding retribution for the multitudes of crimes committed against them, but Mai and Zuko finally managed to get past, settling down into their seats. 

“Remind me never to fly again,” Mai remarked dryly, and Zuko grunted in agreement, pulling his hoodie further down over his eyes. 

She kicked her boots off, tucking herself up onto the seat, and letting her head fall back onto Zuko’s shoulder. The tide of passengers onto the plane was slow, and the pair exchanged sighs and rolled eyes at the different people they saw, until the plane was full. Then, they suffered through the safety announcements with twin grimaces, until the plane lurched from the runway and into the sky, with creaks and groans more suited to an old grandfather than a giant hunk of metal. 

Mai fished in her pockets for her earbuds, jamming them into her ears to drown out the noise around her, and pressed play on her phone. Zuko started stroking her hair as the tinny music filled her ears, and she batted his hand away, but only once, before she relaxed into the feeling. Another silence grew around them, pleasant and warm and comfortable, and before Mai realized it she had fallen asleep in the warm cradle of Zuko’s arm. It doesn’t matter what happens in Tokyo, her mind murmured when she was on the brink of a nap, we’ll face it together.


End file.
